Congressional Record — Senate, S7863 (December 20, 2020)

Summary

Page S7863 of the Senate section of the Congressional Record for December 20, 2020, in interleaved columns, under the heading Coronavirus. Mr. Schumer says after weeks of intense bipartisan negotiation the leadership of both Chambers and the White House reached an agreement on an emergency relief package, that it leaves out limits on workers' legal rights and on the Fed's authority, and that a new President can do more, which is his view. Another speaker says Republicans consistently supported a targeted package under $1 trillion and that Democrats refused to let State and local governments be compromised. Mr. Portman welcomes passage and praises funding to keep carp out of Lake Erie.

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“Congressional Record — Senate, S7863 (December 20, 2020).” Original at www.govinfo.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/crec-crec-2020-12-20-crec-2020-12-20-pt1-pgs7863-8db6b0bc86/, SHA-256 4c514bfbcbeabccf4575d510eeebe97efe611517ce810489e0168f5acf926991.

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December 20, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S7863
For months, Senate Republicans The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without that when President Biden takes over,
have consistently supported a targeted objection, it is so ordered. he can do more and help us dig out of
rescue package, under $1 trillion, fo- CORONAVIRUS this deep hole.
cused on the same kinds of policies Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, after And the good news, too, the poison
that we have actually settled on today. weeks of intense bipartisan negotia- pills that so stopped any progress put
As far back as July, and all autumn, tion, the leadership of both Chambers, in by the majority leader are not in
Republicans have consistently sup- as well as the White House, have this bill. It won’t include any provision
ported a targeted package right in the reached an agreement on an emergency to limit the legal rights of workers who
ballpark of this total amount, with ex- Federal relief package. The agreement were put in harm’s way or any provi-
actly the same kinds of policies in the on this package could be summed up by sion to gratuitously limit the author-
mix. the expression ‘‘better late than ity of the Fed.
The package that will shortly be- never,’’ although I know many of my Now, it is remarkable how far we
come law falls exactly within the ball- Republican colleagues wished it was have come. As I mentioned earlier, this
park of what Senate Republicans have never. summer, the Republican leader admit-
been proposing and trying to pass since After a long and arduous year, after a ted 20 Members of his caucus didn’t
last summer. This is eerily similar to year full of bad news, finally, we have want to vote for another dime of
what we were trying to pass last sum- some good news to deliver to the Amer- COVID relief. Before negotiating with
mer. ican people. Make no mistake about it, Democrats, the majority offered a
Compare the shape of this major this agreement is far from perfect, but package of $500 billion that contained
agreement with the shape of what I it will deliver emergency relief to a na- poison pills designed to doom the thing
proposed all the way back in late July. tion in the throes of a genuine emer- from the start. That way, Republican
Yes, some fine details are different. gency. Senators wouldn’t be forced to approve
There is no doubt this new agreement It should have the votes to pass the any new spending. Here at the end of
contains input from our Democratic Senate, the House, and reach the Presi- the year, reason has prevailed—sweet
colleagues. It is, of course, bipartisan. dent’s desk to become law. We should reason—and we will now deliver a
But those matters could have been set- make that happen as soon as possible— package of almost a trillion dollars.
tled a long time ago as well. as soon as possible—even tonight, if we That matters not for any one party.
Why did it take all this time? We can. It matters for the American people be-
know why. We have heard Democrats By all rights, a bill of this urgency cause we increased the size of this bill,
say openly that they were not willing should have passed 8 months—should expanded its reach. More Americans
to deal all summer and fall but are have passed months ago. The country will receive assistance before the holi-
willing now—willing now—because needed it. days. For Americans who have lost
they have a President-elect of their But we all know what happened. The
their jobs through no fault of their
own political party. That is not my ac- Republican majority caused more than
own, this bill will throw out a safety
cusation; that is their admission. They 8 months of delays and gridlock. Twen-
net.
have been pretty candid about it. ty Members of the Senate majority Initially, Republicans were ready to
So, look, I am glad we have gotten wanted no money. And what the Re- let enhanced unemployment benefits
this done. My Democratic colleagues publican leader simply forgets, for
expire. They were ready to move on
and I have had good discussions this months, he said: Let’s examine the cri-
without help for renters. They opposed
past week. Both parties have a lot to sis; let’s put it on pause, while Demo-
another round of direct payments.
be proud of. But I really regret that crats were demanding more action.
And then when he produced legisla- Their starting offer for UI and rent re-
some on the Democratic side decided
tion, it didn’t have what was needed lief was zero, zero, and zero again.
that partisan Presidential politics were
The good news that transcends any of
more important than getting urgent and had poison pills, a provision that
the obstacles that we faced is that in
and noncontroversial relief out the would give all corporations—no matter
how egregious their behavior—immu- the final agreement, we will extend all
door much sooner to families who have
nity and nothing to help the unem- three Federal unemployment programs
needed this help badly.
The progress of this past week could ployed, no direct checks. created under CARES. We will provide
have happened in July or August or So the idea that this delay was $300 in weekly Federal unemployment
September or October. Senate Repub- caused by Democrats is ‘‘Alice in Won- benefits for the next 10 weeks. For fam-
licans were advocating for a package derland’’ history. It was caused by a ilies struggling to make ends meet,
just like this one all along in realtime. Republican majority that didn’t want this bill will cushion the blow.
I just wish our partners on the other to vote for the moneys desperately A new round of survival checks will
side had put political calculations needed by the American people. The soon be on the way—$600 per adult, an-
aside and worked with us to make this significance of this package, even other $600 for every dependent in the
happen a long time ago. though it is not as large or robust as it household. Many of us would have
However, with that said, I appreciate should be, should not be underesti- liked that to be higher, but at least
the earnest conversations of this past mated. We will deliver the second larg- this is the quickest way to get money
week. I want to thank the Democratic est Federal stimulus in our Nation’s into pockets of the American people,
leader, Speaker PELOSI, Leader MCCAR- history. Only the CARES Act will have sending their tax dollars right back
THY, as well as, in particular, Secretary been bigger—only the CARES Act, where they came from. Of course, as I
Mnuchin, who has been tireless in which I was proud to negotiate with said, it is not as much as many Demo-
these discussions throughout. Both Secretary Mnuchin. crats and some Republicans would have
sides, in both Chambers, have really In size and scope, this bill will exceed liked, and we hope that next year the
stepped up and worked hard to get this the Recovery Act passed in the after- same bipartisan support that emerged
done. math of the financial crisis. And once behind $1,200 stimulus checks will pro-
We will be moving forward with the this Federal relief bill is signed into vide even more assistance to working
start of the pandemic relief and full- law, Congress will have allocated well families.
year funding legislation for the Federal over $3 trillion in relief this year alone. For the first time ever during this
Government, as well, and I hope we can That is a historic figure to match a pandemic, Congress will provide $25 bil-
do this as promptly as possible. historic crisis. It will give the new lion in direct rental assistance to help
I suggest the absence of a quorum. President a boost—a head start—as he reduce the burden on Americans who
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The prepares to right our ailing economy. have fallen behind on their rent. We

dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with SENATE
clerk will call the roll. The economy is in a deep, deep hole be- also extend a moratorium on evictions
The legislative clerk proceeded to cause of President Trump and the Re- to give our fellow citizens more time to
call the roll. publican Senate’s failure to act in a get back on their feet.
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask timely manner. For small business owners, we are
unanimous consent that the order for But this, at least, begins us getting providing businesses the opportunity
the quorum call be rescinded. the relief the American people need so to take another draw of the popular

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S7864 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE December 20, 2020
Paycheck Protection Program. Cru- pletely left behind. Today’s agreement country. We have a healthcare pan-
cially, this bill will provide $12 billion does include aid for specific State-level demic, and we have an economic crisis.
for minority-owned and very small expenses—$82 billion for education I am pleased to say that, on a bipar-
businesses that struggled to access fi- funding, $27 billion in payments for tisan basis, we are now coming to-
nancing during the earlier rounds of testing and State healthcare programs, gether as we did 9 months ago with the
PPP. Local newspapers and local $45 billion for transit systems. I am CARES Act. It shouldn’t have been 9
broadcasters will have access to this very proud of the fact that New York’s months, but we now have a targeted
assistance as well as nonprofits—I MTA will receive the money it needs to bill that focuses on providing a bridge
worked very hard to see that this hap- keep going. It is so vital to our city’s between now and the time at which the
pened—and our nonprofit religious in- economy and something I worked very vaccines will be widely available. We
stitutions. Our churches and our syna- hard for. need the help. The economy is fal-
gogues and our mosques—no collection Make no mistake—these funding tering, as was just said, but also the
plate, no income, but so vital to social sources are not a replacement for di- healthcare crisis in my home State and
services and so needed during a time of rect aid to State and local govern- in so many other places has gotten
crisis—will, once again, get the help ments, and we Democrats will continue worse. So it is past time.
they need—something that I authored to fight for those in the new year. But I am told I have given 21 speeches on
in the CARES bill. in this case, a rose by any other name the floor about the bipartisan nature of
I am especially pleased that this bill smells not quite as sweet, but at least this. There are so many areas of com-
will provide money for bars and res- it brings some relief. State and local mon ground, and I was pleased to be
taurants and $15 billion in SBA grants governments will receive assistance in part of the 10-person bipartisan group
for theater operators and small venue a number of different ways. who put together our own package over
owners through the Save Our Stages When this Chamber gavels back in in the last month. I think that helped to
Act. These venues are so important to 2021, we must pick up where we just encourage leaders on both sides to see
my State and many States across the left off. We have given the administra- that there was a lot of common ground,
country. They are the lifeblood of our tion a vital headstart, but make no that there were ways for us to come to-
communities. They were first to close mistake about it—our economy is in a gether.
and will be the last to open. This bill deep, deep, deep hole, in part, because One of my colleagues is on the floor
gives them a fighting chance. of the Trump administration’s lack of with me now, Senator STABENOW of
Of course, today’s agreement will policy in fighting the coronavirus. Now Michigan. She is one of those Demo-
give a major boost to our battle we will have to help them. This is a crats whom I spoke to over a month
against the disease itself. There will be good start, but a lot more needs to be ago about this bipartisan process, and
more than $30 billion to support the done. We must continue to protect peo- we talked about the common ground
procurement and distribution of the ple’s jobs whether they work for a com- and the ability for us to find ways to
coronavirus vaccine, ensuring that it is pany or a local government. We must move ahead to help those small busi-
free and rapidly distributed to every- do so much more, and we have to start nesses that truly are struggling; indi-
one. building and stimulating our economy viduals who, through no fault of their
Today’s agreement includes all this so it gets out of the hole with things own, lost their jobs because of the eco-
and more—support for childcare, food like infrastructure and wiring every nomic crisis that was precipitated by
assistance, agricultural relief, the home with broadband and improving the pandemic; and to help our schools
Postal Service, and funding to help our healthcare and education systems and to help our healthcare providers
families gain access to broadband. So and so much more—so much more. and to help ensure that we are doing
the American people have a great deal Let me be very, very clear about one what we can here to help at the local
to celebrate in this legislation, but, of thing. Once this deal is signed into law, level to respond to this crisis.
course, the agreement we reached is far it cannot be the final word on congres- f
from perfect. It leaves out direct State sional relief. There is more to do in the
and local assistance. Despite desperate new year with a new administration GREAT LAKES RESTORATION
pleas from Governors, mayors, and that has a much more favorable atti- INITIATIVE ACT OF 2019
economists across the spectrum, the tude toward giving the American peo- Mr. PORTMAN. Mr. President, I am
Republicans stubbornly refused to pro- ple the help they need. The bipartisan on the floor tonight to join my col-
vide direct aid to State and local gov- agreement is simply a downpayment. It league Senator STABENOW of Michigan
ernments. Over a million public em- will establish a floor, not a ceiling, for to ask our colleagues to support legis-
ployees have already lost their jobs. It coronavirus relief in 2021. lation that has to do with the Great
doesn’t matter if you are working for a Over the course of this challenging Lakes. It is called the Great Lakes
small business and get laid off or if you year, tens of millions of Americans Restoration Initiative. We are asking
are working for a government and are have been pushed close to the breaking to reauthorize that legislation.
laid off; you still need to feed your point. They have lost their jobs. They This is one of those public-private
family. So why is there such a dif- have lost their homes. Many can’t feed partnerships that work. It is not only
ference on this side of the aisle be- their families. Many have lost neigh- public, like Federal public, and private;
tween these same people—flesh and bors, colleagues, friends, and family to it is Federal, State, local, and private
blood? Because some work for the gov- this vicious, vicious disease. They have individuals coming together to figure
ernment, they don’t get help, but be- such great pain—a pain that we can out how to keep our Great Lakes the
cause some work for a small business, only distantly empathize with because amazing treasure that they are.
they do. Both should get help. it hasn’t happened directly to us here. I represent Lake Erie. It is on the
State revenues, of course, are signifi- As the pandemic enters its worst north coast of Ohio. It is the most shal-
cantly down across the country in phase, we will continue to be isolated low and also the most fertile of the
States red and blue. The continued op- from one another, but behind closed Great Lakes. It has incredible fishing.
position to State and local funding doors, desperation mounts for millions There is a gigantic, $7 billion fishing
from the Republicans remains deeply and millions of our fellow Americans. industry in the Great Lakes. A lot of it
irresponsible. It will force States to This bill is for them—for them—to is recreational fishing—$7 billion. It is
make painful decisions to cut jobs and carry them to a brighter day. being threatened right now, really, by
potentially raise taxes on working fam- I yield the floor. a few different things. One is these
ilies, and it will hurt the economy of The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Asian carp, so-called ‘‘bighead carp,’’

dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with SENATE
the entire country as millions more HOEVEN). The Senator from Ohio. that are coming up into the lake. We
government workers are laid off at a Mr. PORTMAN. Mr. President, first, are doing all we can to keep them out,
time when we are struggling to re- I am delighted that we are finally at but this funding, the Great Lakes Res-
cover—hurting us all. the point at which we are passing legis- toration Initiative, focuses on that
Still, the Democrats refused to let lation to deal with the COVID–19 crisis issue to keep the carp from ruining
State and local governments be com- that has gripped my State and our Lake Erie as they have ruined other

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